nervousness?

Question

i have a piano recital coming up and im supposed to close it. the thing is, i tend to get a bit stagefright. no not just the running away stage fright. its kinda worse... (well at least to me) its a big problem because my hands start shaking soo hard and when it does, it's kinda hard to nail the notes. how can i overcome this or at least stop the shaking

hmm, ill put this in theaters section since i kno actors deal with it all the time...

Answer 1

Wow, I know how you feel.

I've been acting for years, and I NEVER get nervous when I go on stage. I'm completely ready and it's more of an adrenaline rush that stage fright.

But about a year and a half ago, I took a stong dive into the world of singing. Now I'm going into musical theatre but when it comes to singing, I still get really nervous.

Here's what I have to do.

I get where I need to be (ie, stage, behind a curtain for competitions, or backstage) and I take a minute and think. I tell myself it's all for fun, and no matter what happens, it's gonna happen. If I mess up? Oh well, professionals mess up! If I nail it! GREAT! But i'm never gonna do my best walking out there thinking about how scared I am.

So I focus on what needs to be done, whether it's singing a cut from a classical piece for Texas All-State, to going onstage for my solo in my musicals, to just singing for like Pop Show or a Cabaret type thing.

Don't focus on the people, or the fright or anything like that. Focus on your music. If you think about what you need to do during your music, think about how you want it to be portrayed, and have a good time doing it...before you know it, you're into it and not scared, and then all of a sudden it's over, you walk off stage and you're like..."OH CRAP! I JUST DID IT!"

i mean it's all about just realizing whatev happens happens, you can't go change it, so wouldn't u rather go on and just forcus on ur music than to get off stage and be like, i could've done that!!!! just go on and give it your all

love and peace,
kris

Answer 2

I think all performers have experienced stagefright to some degree, especially singers because it can be hard to control your voice when you're singing if you're nervous. I can tell you one thing from experience, the more you do it, the easier it gets. As you gain confidence in yourself as a performer you get less nervous about performing a piece and more excited about showing the audience what you can do (especially if you've done it before and gotten good feedback).

But, nervousness can be debilitating in some people and you do have to learn how to control it. Have you ever heard someone sing and you can tell that they have a good voice but because they're so nervous, their voice is shaking all over the place and they don't move at all? It all comes down to confidence in yourself and your abilities. Helping to know your piece cold will help, you should be able to do it in your sleep, so that at least you don't have to worry about forgetting a note. Or if you do forget something, you can pick it up easily somewhere else nd the audience is none the wiser (happens ALL the time on stage...)

I would recommend trying to get some performance experience before your recital. Just performing in from of people will help lessen your anxiety when you see that you CAN do it, and do it well!

Ask you family, friends, neighbors, chruchgroups, sports groups, etc if you can give them little mini recitals (and do it formally like your actual recital so you're in a performance mindset and not just rehearsal).

Also, remember that they're all rooting for you! They're there for support and because they want to hear you play your beautiful piece! It's ok if you mess up, they're not judging you! So, most importantly, have fun!!

Answer 3

If you close the recital you mist be really good! Well my best advice is to ask your friend or family or just any person if you can practice in front of them, when you do this, make sure your hands don't shake. Also make sure your hands aren't cold and clamy. Sometimes thats what makes my hands shake when I play piano. Also, take deep breaths and calm yourself own while the other people are playing.

Answer 4

I'm going to go in the opposite direction and make a radical statement: There is no such thing as Stage Fright.

There is only the fear of letting yourself down.

You're doing this for you. You are the only one who matters.

You enjoy the music.

That's all there is to it; enjoy what you do. That's what actors do on stage - they enjoy the role. When we enjoy the role there is no space for Stage Fright.

Enjoy the music. Nothing else matters. You can't go wrong if you enjoy what you're playing.

Answer 5

It's gonna take time to over come this not just over night. But I am sure you can do it. Many piano players hands shake you just have to make sure you control it. You should think or picture yourself that your alone and no one watching. Can you kind of not face the crowd? The crowd don't expect you to be perfect anyways, and I doubt they would know when you messed up.

Answer 6

Hi,

I know how you feel. This page on my site might help you: http://www.actingcareerstartup.com/how_to_get_over_stage_fright.html . It's about how to get over stage fright.

Hope that helps!

Tony
http://www.actingcareerstartup.com